- A third steamer Cape Girardeau was christened 100 years ago (3/26/24)
- Cape Girardeau christens its namesake (3/19/24)
- The humanist philosophy of Lester Mondale (3/12/24)1
- Cape Osteopathic Hospital opens its doors (3/5/24)
- 8 killed and a million dollars damage done in 1924 tornado (2/27/24)1
- Jackson's militant priest, county recorder at odds over marriage licenses (2/20/24)
- Streaking fad comes to Cape (2/13/24)2
Bill Wilferth served Cape schools for 31 years
A story from January 1964 about a power outage in Cape Girardeau caught my eye, not because of the subject of the story, but because of the photo that accompanied it.
Central High principal Fred M. Wilferth, I thought upon seeing this photo, must have been an enterprising fellow. The pic made such an impression on me, that I went hunting for more information about Wilferth.
Unfortunately, I found no detailed stories about his career, until I read his obituary published in September 2003.
Frederick Miller "Bill" Wilferth was an educator for 42 years, 31 of them with the Cape Girardeau Public Schools. He was born in Millersville, the son of John Fred and Ethel Kathryn Miller Wilferth. He married I.V.D. Sebaugh in 1938. She died in 1995, and Wilferth married LouVera Green Daughtery a year later. She died in 2006.
After attending school in Millersville and Jackson, Wilferth graduated from Southeast Missouri State University in 1934. He received a master's degree from Southern Illinois University in 1954. During World War II, he was an Air Force communications instructor at Scott Air Force Base for two years.
Wilferth began his career with the Cape Giradeau Public schools around 1943. (He had earlier worked for the school systems at Kurreville, Millersville, Oak Ridge and Bloomsdale.) At Cape Girardeau, he was principal of Washington Elementary, Cape Junior High and Cape Central High. When he retired in 1974, he was guidance counselor at the junior high.
It was while he was principal at the junior high that he turned hero:
From the junior high, he moved on to Central High. As he prepared to begin his work there, he outlined his displinary program for the school board:
Later that same month, a newspaper photographer captured his image once more:
Cow milking may have been a sign of things to come for Wilferth. His obituary states that after his retirement, he farmed in the Millersville area. His business ventures also included Cole's Grocery Store in Cape Girardeau, the Jackson Roller Rink (which he built with Elmer Seabaugh), and the Trading Post at Millersville.
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